Author Archives: Parisian Fields

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About Parisian Fields

Parisian Fields is the blog of two Toronto writers who love Paris. When we can't be there, we can write about it. We're interested in everything from its history and architecture to its graffiti and street furniture. We welcome comments, suggestions, corrections, and musings from all readers.

A little mystery solved

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Parisian Fields

Curiosity, plus an interest in Paris, has led us to many surprising finds and some unusual encounters. A recent purchase at the Toronto International Antiquarian Book Fair is a case in point. It was a one-of-a-kind object: a handmade, illustrated, … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris art | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

An artist finds life among the tombs

Posted on November 10, 2013 by Parisian Fields

When I look at Pamela Williams’s photographs of sculptures, I feel I am seeing real people. This photo, which she calls “Glance,” was taken in 2010 in Passy Cemetery. It is so realistic, one almost does a double-take. The once-lustrous … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris art, Paris cemeteries | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Paris in the First World War

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Parisian Fields

It’s that time of year again. The poppy-sellers are out on the streets of Toronto, and soon, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we will stop what we are doing for a minute or … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris postcards, Paris streets, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

George Barbier and the dream of Paris

Posted on October 13, 2013 by Parisian Fields

Every year, millions of people come to Paris dreaming of beauty, elegance, high fashion, personal freedom, decadent leisure, titillating knowledge, romantic affairs, sexual dalliances, and secret places. What they may not realize is that some of their dreams are built … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris art, Paris nostalgia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

The once and future Paris transport museum

Posted on September 29, 2013 by Parisian Fields

The huge Maison de la RATP on the quai de la Rapée has a sweeping view of the Seine and an impressive central atrium in which are positioned a few examples of historic trams and omnibuses. What it does not … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris metro, Paris museums | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Le Musée Valentin Haüy: A different vision of history

Posted on September 15, 2013 by Parisian Fields

This is no ordinary terrestrial globe. And you’ll find it in a museum that is anything but ordinary. When we move in closer, we find that it is labelled in Braille. And the map shown below is not your average … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris history, Paris museums, Paris typewriters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Going, going, gone

Posted on September 1, 2013 by Parisian Fields

In the 1850s, as the old Paris of narrow streets and ramshackle houses gave way to the broad boulevards and uniform apartment blocks planned by Napoleon III and carried out by Georges-Eugène Haussmann, Charles Baudelaire wrote an epitaph for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris bookstores, Paris shops | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

The colours of the Batignolles

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Parisian Fields

The Batignolles does not attract many tourists. That, in itself, is part of its charm. But there are many reasons to venture there. Food. Gardens. Places for children to play. And colour, because that is what struck us both – … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris gardens, Paris parks, Paris quartiers | Tagged , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Mushrooms, manure, and the secret of French food

Posted on August 4, 2013 by Parisian Fields

Recently, at The Astrolabe Gallery, a print and map store on Sparks Street in Ottawa, I chanced upon a page from the London Illustrated News, Dec. 4, 1869. Two woodcuts depicted “Mushroom Culture in France.” The “entrance to a mushroom … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris food, Paris gardens, Paris history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Death and taxes

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Parisian Fields

Whenever I buy postcards or other pictures of Paris, I gravitate to anything unfamiliar. So when I was leafing through some inexpensive engravings at an antiques fair on the Place St-Sulpice in June, I was immediately drawn to this one. … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris architecture, Paris history, Paris maps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments